Splashworld Venus Beach

After reading reviews on here previous to arriving at the hotel I was a bit concerned about what we’d let ourselves in for but after spending 2 weeks here I can honestly say we had a really enjoyable and relaxing time. Arrival: I would describe this hotel as a foreign Butlins but much better although in regards to the clientele staying here some of them wouldn’t look out of place on the tv shows Benefits Street and Jeremy Kyle. I find it very hard to understand how people like that get to afford a holiday abroad when people like us have to work 40+ hours a week to afford nice holidays, it was obvious from overhearing conversations that many of the English guests were on benefits, which is an absolute joke and shows what a mess our welfare system is in the UK that it’s possible to holiday abroad without needing to work. Don’t be put off by my description of the guests though as it was actually one of the many things that made our holiday so great, as these people have no shame so they could be relied on to provide daily entertainment whether it was arguing or them carrying on like they own the place, one family carried on like they were the British Monarchy (Not so dissimilar seeing as they live on handouts too) Our room The room we were given was partly facing the water park and also had a sea view, the room was spacious, bright and nicely furnished. We had an issue with our room flooding 3 times in a row due to the plug being blocked, this should have been sorted on day 1, although eventually they did find the issue and fix it and it didn’t reoccur again during our stay. We chose not to have our room cleaned everyday in order to protect the environment but on the days it was cleaned not one of the days during our 14 day break was the sheets and bedding changed, plus regularly we had to request additional shower gel and toilets rolls from reception due to our room not being restocked when it was cleaned. The Waterpark: The water park was amazing, there was loads of slides available and whenever there was queues they were always short. The lifeguards are all really friendly and love to interact with the guests, they even joined us on one of the slides on our first day. The Beach Restaurant: The beach restaurant was excellent for freshly made pizza, pininis, chips, pasta and a variety of salads and desserts. Out of all the restaurants I would say the staff at the beach restaurant were by far the best, they were all really friendly, the tables were always prepared ready for us, they would usually get us our drinks and the chefs helped us learn Tunisian phrases to make it easier for us to describe that we are vegetarian. The Main Restaurant: There was always plenty to eat at this restaurant for our evening meals, there was always something different due to them doing themed nights, I especially enjoyed the Tunisian nights. As a vegetarian I never struggled for food and I was able to try new things that I hadn’t previously eaten before this holiday. The breakfasts were also excellent, the chefs made fresh eggs and omelettes at the live counter as well as fresh Tunisian bread and pancakes, I highly recommend the Tunisian bread, it was delicious! The one thing that does need to be improved in the main restaurant was the service, some of the waitering staff made it blatantly obvious that without a tip they weren’t even going to provide the basics such as cleaning the table and preparing it for us to take our seats whereas with others who would tip they would hover around their tables, fetching their drinks and they would even decorate the table. I’m sorry but this has to be improved as I won’t be forced into tipping, I’ve worked as a waiter in the past and yes I may have offered something extra for tipping guests but I would always offer an excellent service to the rest of the customers as that was my job. Also I found it really annoying to get drinks, the bar never seemed to be manned in the restaurant and there was usually no glasses available. The Tunisian Restaurant: I wouldn’t recommend making the effort to book into this restaurant especially if you’re a vegetarian like me. I was surprised as on Tunisian night in the main restaurant, there was so much traditional local food to choose from but at the Tunisian restaurant my main was a mix of pasta and veg that was just a mix of anything they could put together, there was no effort from them in trying to make it authentic. Activities: The hotel offers a variety of activities and this was where they exceeded my expectations, the range they offer is what I would expect of a 5* hotel. I especially enjoyed the foam party, the beach carnival and being able to use the kayaks on the sea free of charge. The staff: The majority of the staff we interacted with were excellent, I would like to especially mention Khalid from the Animation Team who made a lot of effort with us in the evenings to make sure we had an enjoyable time, nothing was too much trouble for him, an example was when we couldn’t find a table to watch the evening entertainment, he went inside and brought one out for us. Also the General Manager Sonia was very approachable and would always greet us whenever we passed. Most of all I would like to thank our Tui Rep Karina, we had many conversations throughout our stay with her, she always made herself available and would always go above and beyond to assist, we had a very poor experience on the desert safari and she dealt with it professionally and sensitively. The beach: The beach was perfect, there was no seaweed, the hotel had its own fenced off area preventing the sellers from hassling us and there was security positioned on the beach if required. During our stay we had a mixture of conditions in the sea, when it was calm the sea was crystal clear but when it was choppy it was more fun than relaxing. Advise & recommendations: - Purchase your currency from the airport as it’s at a better rate than the hotel. - I’d recommend staying inside the resort rather than exploring the surroundings, we made the mistake of visiting the marina and got conned into a shop by some local claiming to recognise us from our hotel saying he was a chef. - Avoid the Desert Safari, it’s a waste of 2 days of the holiday, you’ll come back feeling exhausted as both days are spent in a cramped minibus constantly driving with very little time visiting sights, when you finally arrive at the hotel in the desert you’ll be forced to leave the hotel at around 3am, it was an absolute joke. The tour guide we had was called Mohammed and due to our sexual orientation he took an instant dislike to us and made sure to do everything he could to ruin our trip including forcing us to sit apart in the minibus even though there was spare seats, telling us that the seats are for couples only even though we are engaged and have been together 7 years. - Avoid any sort of activity that involves animals. This country has no idea when it comes to animal welfare, an example I experienced during my holiday were the abuse of the camels on the beach outside the hotel, most days I would witness the ride sellers whipping the camels with electrical wiring, leaving visible scarring, also there was an obese seller riding one of the young camels which I felt really sorry for, he was clearly over 20 stone which must have caused the camel and horse a lot of discomfort. Also if you do make the mistake to do a camel ride, whatever pride you agree at the start will massively increase once the very short ride had finished, we witnessed daily arguments each day due to this. If you find yourself being ripped off just offer what was originally agreed and walk away, if they continue to hassle you then request assistance from the hotel security, they always did a good job of moving them on. - If you want a sea view and it’s not a decent price through Tui (more than likely) then I’d recommend sorting it on arrival at the hotel as it costs roughly £11 per night whereas if you do in advance we were being quoted as much as £560 to upgrade. - The cocktails we had were ok, they make an effort to offer mojitos and pina coladas but the taste is far from what they should taste like. We got used to them though so just don’t have high expectations when it comes to drinks here. - If you have a late departure make sure to ask reception for a spare room key so you can have a quick shower before departure. Final thoughts: We had a really enjoyable stay at Splashworld Venus Beach, I never got bored of the food which I usually do on all inclusive holidays due to it usually being repetitive, but at Splashworld Venus Beach there was always a variety of options even for a vegetarian, so each day my meals were never the same as the previous day. If i decide to visit Tunisia again I’ll be sure to stay at this hotel again.

Hotel was good but not total luxury but then it is not a 5 star so was definitely worth more than the 3* rating! Food a little repetitive but that’s it. The rooms were lovely and clean(definitely worth upgrading when you arrive) The general manager was an absolute diamond lady and very friendly but what made our holiday was momo and his team of animation... I have literally never been on another holiday with such an energetic, friendly and absolutely dedicated entertainment team they were fantastic and I for sure will be returning again x